(5) Vela Luka, 21 July 1956

Figure 1. Synoptic situation at the time of the event: (left) mean sea level pressure and 10-m wind; (middle) temperature and wind at 850 hPa; (right) geopotential height and wind at 500 hPa.

In his diary, Nikola Tabain mentions the occurrence of “a large flood in the morning” in Vela Luka on this date (Tabain and Tabain, 1994).


Synoptic situation during the event was characterized by weak pressure gradients over the Mediterranean and Europe, and corresponding weak surface winds. At the 850-hPa level, warm air was advancing from the northern Africa across the central Mediterranean towards the Adriatic Sea, with pronounced temperature gradients over the middle and the southern Adriatic. An upper level ridge can be seen at the 500 hPa level – with associated strong winds (> 30 m/s) of southwesterly to westerly direction blowing over the Adriatic Sea.